Sectional grain sprouter



July 31, 1923- c. c. NEWPORT SECTIOfiAL GRAIN SPROUTER 1921 2Sheets-Sheet 1 I Filed Nov. 10

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Patented July 31, 1923..

stares piazza CALVIN C. NEV7PO1ET, OF DES MOINES, IOWA, TO DES BEGIN-ESINCUBATQB I CODEPAN'Y, 0F DES IEOINES, IOVTA, [a CORPDRATION OF IOWA.

snc'rionar snare: SPROUTER.

Application filed November 10, 1921. Serial No. 514,413.

To all whom it may concern:

. Be it known that I, CALVIN C. NEWPORT, a citizen of the United Statesof America, and resident of Des Moines, Polk County, Iowa, have inventeda new and useful Sectional Grain Sprouter, of which the following is aspecification.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved device for thereception of grain during the process of sprouting.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved elastic orsectional device adapted' to facilitate the artificial sprouting ofgrain.

A further ob-Ject of this invention is to provide, a sectional device ofthe class described, comprising a base or heating unit and a pluralityof tray units adapted to contain the grain to be sprouted, the walls ofsaid tray sections being formed with air chambers so arranged as tocommunicate when the several sections are collocated for use.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved means forrcmovably and replaceably mounting grain trays in the tray units. I

A further objectof this invention is-to provide an improved top sectionhaving a hinged top portion with a specially arranged stop brace andalso provided with vents leading from its interior and from theairchamher or, space. v

A further object of thisinvention is'to provide an improved construction'for glazed doors for the tray sections. 3

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combinationof elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claims andillustrated by the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1. is a frontelevation illustrating "my improved device. Figure 2 is a verticalsection of the same. F1gure3 IS a side ele- ,vation ofthetop section,dotted lines showin; the cover in partly open posit on. Figure ,4 is aplan of the top section. F gure 5 is a plan ot'the top section, thecover and trays being removed. Figure 6 is a plan of a tray employed in;the device. Figure 7 is a vertical section on the indicated line 7,7 ofFigure 1, of one of the doors and on an en larig'ed scale.

with a knob handle 21L A heating device In the construction of thedevice as shown the numeral 10 designates generally a base section, onwhich are removably and re placeably mounted plurality of tray sec;tions 11, inth s nstance three in number,

all of which are surmountec ja s top tr l I section 11 provided with'acover 12 hinged theretoat one margin. The base section 10' and traysections 11,11 are rectangular in plan and elevation, and the basesection 10 preferably is of materially greater vertical dimension thansaid tray sections. Thebase section 10 is composed of traifnes formedofwooden strips 13 on which are mounted walls'l l and a bottom 15"'ofsheet metal,

preferably galvanized. ,The' base section preferably is provided withsills 16 secured to its bottom, wherebysaidbottom iselevated above thesupporting surface. The

base section 10 is provided with airelative'ly large open ng 17 n itsfront wall, and a door 18 is hinged atone side margin to a frame member190i said wall an'dlis adapted to partially close said opening: 1'?.at'jtimesyas shown however. thevdoor 18 is of less/vertical dimensionthan the opening lflvvhereby aspace is left at the ,bottom'o f the dooralso is formed with a, ventilating port and such as a lamp 22, shownconventionally, is

vwhen closed for the" admission of ventilation to the section anddevice. Theldoor '18 r mounted in the base section lO'and rests looselyon the floor 15 thereof. A pan :23 is mounted in the'upperportion of thebase'sec-y tion 10 and is spaced at its sides from the.

sidewalls 14 of said section whereby 'slotsor passages 24 are provided.leading from the interior of said base section throughthetop thereof, itbeingnnderstood that said.

base section is open at its top except for the closure by means of saidpain "The front wall of the base -section 10 preferably is tori med withventilating slctea dj ent the front of the 13211123.. I r

Each tray section 11, 11? ft'ormedfpf frames 26 of wooden str ps towhichiare at tach ed metal side walls 27, saidsections be.

"Eng open at their bottoms and tops, save for the hinged cover 12 ofthe-uppermost section 11'? as, above noted. The sections 11, 11?areadapted-to be mounted inseries upon the base 10 and upon each other,the frames 26. resting upon the frames 13 of'said bottom section-or uponother frames-26 ,of

other tray sections, the walls 27 being in alinernent'with the walls 141of the base sec- 7 tion. The traysections 11, 11 lso are formed withinner walls 28 spaced from the walls 27 whereby an air space or chamber29 is provided extending from the bottom to top of each section on therear sides thereof. The inner walls 28 or the tray sections 11, 11 areextended below the planes of the lower margins of the bottom fr 26. andouter side walls 27 of said sections, said projecting portions beingoffset or bent inwardly from the planes ol the inner wal s, and beingdesignated by the numeral The projecting portions 30 of the inner wallsare adapted to nest or fit snugly within the walls 28 01" the subjacentsection, or, in the case of the lowermost oi the tray sections, withinthe pan 23 of the base section 10. in this manner the superposedsections are held firmly in position and accidental displacement bylateral movement is prevented. When the tray sections 11. 11 are somounted, the air spaces 29 of said sections are continuous andcommunicating from the lowermost to the uppermost of said sections, andthe bottom of the air space or chamber of the lowermost of said traysections communicates with the slots or passages 24 between the pan andside walls of the base section, whereby communication is providedbetween theinterior of said base section and the surrounding air spacesor chambers of all of the superposed tray sections.

The frame 31 of the hingedcover l2 preferably is composed of stripswhich a re wiser than the frame strips 26 of the tray sections, and saidframe members 31 when said co is in closed position, overlie and closethe upper ends of the air spaces or chambers The side and rear outerwalls 2"? of the uppermost tray section ll are formed with a number ofvents 32, whereby a limited circulation of air from the air spa orchambers 29 is permitted when the cover 12 is provided or air from isclosed. The cover 12 also with vents as to peimit escape the interior ofthe tray sections.

@n the "forward sides of the tray sections 11,11 the walls 27 and 28 areomitted, so

that the sections are open at'said forward sides except ashereinatternoted. Angle strips 3st are fixed to the inner "faces of the a innerside walls 28 of the tray sections and provide supports on which areslidably, re movably and replaceably mounted grain trays 35; two of saidtrays being; provided for each of the tray sections 11 and 11 The trays35 preferably are formed of sheet metal with perforations 36 in theirbottoms and are comparatively shallow. A stop strip 37 is mountedvertically across and projects inwardly iiromthe rear wall of each traysection 11, 11. It the it'unction of the stop strips 3'? to limitrearward movement of he tra s 35 and prevent contact thereof with therear walls of the tray sections, whereby an air space is formed at therear of the device between the rear walls and travs Each tray section11, il -is provided a a door 38 hinged at one margin to its front ofsaid doors is formed of a rectangular frame 39 of sheet metal which ismounted a sheet d0 oi glass. T i. for to mount the glass'sheets 40 inthe o frames by stamping; or pressing hooks rearwardly from said frame(see the sheets 40 being received and held be tween said hoolrs and themain portions oz" 1; frames.

Each of the door 18, 38 is formed with short vertical slot d2 adjacentthe margin opposite the hinged margin thereof, and screw eye is mountedin the adjacent frame member of the section on which each door iscarried. The screw eyes arc adapteu to pass through the slots l2vi i thedoors are closed and when said so v eyes ar turned a quarter turn sothat they stand transversely of the slots they serve to prevent openingor the doors. Each of tire formed with a hook d6 on its opposite end.

The brace 45 extends between studs or nails d7, l8 carried; by theadyacent top Mame member 49 of said top section 11 and en tending acrossthe space between t walls 119 27 28 of said section. When the cover ismoved to its furthestlimit the hoolr the brace engages one oi. the studsor nails 47, d8 and prevents withdrawal of said brace from the spacebetween the walls and also limits opening movement of the cover andserves to support said cover in open position. in a position inclined tothe rear oi the vertical. its the studs or nails L7, 18 are spaced onlysuliiciently for free travel of the brace 4-5 between them, theengagement of one of said studs or nails by the hooked end of said braceis insured.

In practical use the device is assembled as shown and grain to besprouted, particularly for use as poultry food, is placed in the trays35. The grain is sprinkled with water as desirech and drip from theupper trays is received in turn by the underlying trays and finally bythe pan 23., Heat is furnished by the lamp 22 and heated air from theinterior of the base section 10 rises through the air spaces or chambers29 of the walls of the tray sections and insulates and protects theinterior of said tray sections from influence is is 01': coldatmospheric air, and a restricted circulation of air to and from thedevice is permitted by the vents 32 in the outer walls of the topsection. The heating of the base section also causes an evaporation ofwater in the tray or pan 28, and heated, moist air rises from said basesection through and around the perforated trays, and grain therein iscaused to sprout and grow rapidly. The condition of the sprouted grainmay be viewed at any time through the glazed doors 38, and any of thetrays may be removed, by endwise movement on the strips 37, by openingthe doors 38 The capacity of the device may be increased by adding othertray sections 11, or diminished by removing certain of said sections, sothat the device may be adjusted in size andcapacity to the needs of eachuser.

I do not desire to be understood as limit ing myself to the preciseconstruction herein shown and described, as various modifications,within the scope, of the appended claims, may be employed withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention.

Particular emphasis is laid upon the advantage of employing this devicefor the sprouting of grain, such as oats, for use as feed for chickensduring the winter season; thus providing during such winter season thekind of food most needed by the 'Eowls and which without a device ofthis kind it impossible to procure for them;

I claim as my invention- I 1. A grain sprouter, comprising a basesection adapted to contain a heating device, a plurality of traysections separately formed and adapted to be mounted in series upon saidbase section, grain trays mounted in said tray sections, said traysect-ions be ing formed with double walls the air spaces of whichcommunicate with the air spaces of adjacent sections, the air spaces ofthe lowermost tray section communicating with the interior of the basesection, and a movable top for the uppermost tray section, said top whenclosed forming a closure for the upper ends of said air spaces.

April, 1921.

tion, the bottoms of the inner walls of said" tray sections being projected' below the planes oi the bottoms of the sections and adapted tonestwithin the walls of the next underlying sections, and a top for theuppermost tray section.

3. In a grain sprouter, a tray section comprising side and rear walls ofdouble construction whereby air. spaces are formed which are open attheir upper and lower ends, the inner members of said'walls pro jectingbelow the plane of the lower margins of the outer walls and being bentinwardly and adapted to nest within the walls of an I other section, anda closure for. the front of said section.

l. A. grain sprouter, comprising a base section adapted to contain aheating device, said base section being formed with ventilating ports, adrip pan being mounted in the upper portion of said base section andspaced from some of the walls thereof, a plurality of tray sectionsseparately formed and adapted to be mounted inseries on said basesection and adapted to carry grain trays with perforated bottoms, saidtraysections having air spaces in their walls open their upper and lowerendsand communicating throughout the height of saidtray'sections, theair spaces of the lowermost tray section communicating with the interioro'tthe base section by means of the spaces around said pan, and amovable top for the uppermost tray section.

Signed at Des Moines, in the county of Polk and State of Iowa, this 11day of I CALVIN o. NEWPORT.

